Sweeping Changes to the SAT exam: Good or Bad?

Only time will tell if the unprecedented changes to the SAT will actually improve student’s score on the test.

The College Board announced sweeping changes to the 88-year-old exam last week in order to better accommodate the needs of what students should be learning in the classroom. 

These are the first changes since 2005, since the College Board introduced the essay portion, which also includes sections focusing on math and critical reading.

College Board president David Coleman said he saw these changes as a breath of relief since students will no longer be expected to learn fancy new skills.

The College board is giving students and test-prep providers a full two years to prepare for the changes. This year’s freshman class will be the first to take the new exam in the spring of 2016.

These are the ways in which the SAT will change:

• Questions on the test will be more grounded in the real world and relate directly to the kind of students will do in college and in their careers.
• The SAT will narrow its focus to key concepts that are deemed critical for college success.
• The exam will return to being scored on a 1,600-point scale, rather than 2,400 points.
• Students will no longer be penalized for wrong answers.
• The essay portion of the test will be optional and scored separately.
• The exam will last three hours, with an additional 50 minutes for the optional essay.

Also added to the test is an excerpt from one of America’s founding documents, such as the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution or texts that these documents have spurred about freedom, justice and human dignity.

More relevant words will replace old, complicated vocabulary in the SAT. Coleman noted that vocabulary flashcards will no longer be necessary in studying for the exam.

Complete specifications of the exam will be released on April 16.

If you want to learn more about these changes please visit deliveringopportunity.org.